I just finished watching the movie Bessie starring Queen Latifah as Bessie Smith and Mo’nique as Ma Rainey. Suggested watching by Roxanne, my friend and fellow writer, and an excellent recommendation it was. Thank you Rox…. the timing couldn’t be more perfect. A great segue for this column and also for the series. Ma and Bessie were two completely different women singing their own style of the blues together, and apart, one learning from the other and taking the blues to a whole new audience. I’ll start with the groundbreaker.

This week Paul Revere of 1960s pop band Paul Revere & The Raiders passed away at the age of 76. He and his band were one of the second generation of pop stars who took the post-Elvis world by storm on the back of Beatlemania.

Right off the top, I’m going to categorically state that I’d rather stick my head in an Asplundh Whisper Chipper than get into a discussion about Woody Allen and his present ex-familial travails. So, for the purposes of this sociological treatise, let’s all pretend that the Woodster never drew his first neurotic breath.

That being said…this bespectacled “He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named”, this nerdy non-gentile who does not exist anymore than The Perth County Conspiracy, does shine a bright light on a peculiar and startlingly capricious aspect of the human condition. I.E. the separation of the artist from the art.

Never ones to let a good trend pass by without hopping on board, Rock and Roll decided this week to join the zombie apocalypse. The Rolling Stones announced the first of several gigs marking their 50th anniversary together (at $2,000 a seat for prime viewing at the London “O”). Rush, now celebrating their 40th in its current incarnation, was nominated for a chance to become a tourist attraction in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Oh, and Chuck Berry – the undisputed Father of Rock and Roll turned….86.

I am in awe of how much there is to do in Toronto if you are looking for a reason to get out of the house or forget the work-a-day woes we all carry around with us like humps on the backs of our spirits. If you are honest with yourself you know that the whole ‘adulthood’ period we’re all supposed to embrace is a pack of lies and purposely inflicted on us by people who got older and don’t want us to keep having a good time when we’re able because they were taught the good times have to stop when you get married, or have kids, or get a mortgage or become burdened by responsibility and obligation.

Bullshit.

That’s exactly when you should give in to your inner child and let your hair down once in a while, even if you don’t have much hair left.